With an annual transaction value exceeding 20 billion yuan and tens of thousands of business entities, the Honghe knitwear cluster in Jiaxing, Zhejiang, is attempting to break through the growth ceiling of traditional specialized markets with a 4,000-square-meter service center. This new facility, named the Integrated Domestic-Foreign Trade Service Center, is not merely an expansion of physical space; it compresses four major functions—service, trade, branding, and incubation—into a single platform, reflecting a shift from selling products to selling services across the cluster.
Event Background
The move comes at a time when the airport economy is expanding. The international cargo route at Jiaxing Nanhu Airport is now operational, and the construction of the airport new city is accelerating, giving this traditional manufacturing cluster its first high-timeliness cross-border logistics channel. Previously, knitwear exports relied on coastal port consolidation, which was slow and unpredictable. With air cargo now available, quick-response orders and small-batch, high-value-added products have new delivery possibilities. This is why the service center is located on the third floor of Zhongchuang Market, equipped with customs declaration and logistics services.
Notably, the center has divided a 1,200-square-meter product selection area into zones for Japan/Korea, Middle East, South America, and Russia-Europe-Central Asia. This physical segmentation is an attempt to bring overseas buyer preferences directly into local product selection, shortening the supply-demand matching chain. For small and medium-sized factories accustomed to order-based production, this means moving from passive order-taking to actively understanding regional market differences—a cognitive upgrade.
Industry Impact
Before the center's launch, the Maoshansend cross-border e-commerce platform had organized over 200 enterprises to explore markets in more than ten countries, attracting nearly 1,000 overseas buyers to Honghe. These numbers show that Honghe enterprises are not lacking willingness to go global but are constrained by the high costs and risks of going solo. By introducing third-party quality inspection, intellectual property early warning, and AR digital product selection tools, the new center aims to integrate scattered export efforts into a systematic supply. For buyers, this means one-stop verification, sample viewing, ordering, customs declaration, and even logistics arrangements in Honghe, significantly improving procurement efficiency.
From an upgrading perspective, the tiered cultivation system is insightful: individual workshops receive policy guidance, small businesses get digital transformation support, and larger enterprises are encouraged to globalize. This design acknowledges the complexity of Honghe's business ecosystem—tens of thousands of entities cannot transform simultaneously; each must find its place. The challenge is avoiding formalism. Can the center deliver lower transaction costs and higher order conversion rates than traditional channels? The answer will determine its success.
Practical Recommendations
For Buyers - Leverage the zone-based product selection center to quickly compare product styles and price points across factories by target market, reducing cross-border sourcing time. - Include quality inspection and branding services in contracts, using third-party agencies introduced by the center to prevent cross-border quality disputes. - Consider shifting small-batch, quick-response orders from sea to air freight to test market responsiveness, leveraging the airport logistics advantage.
For Exporters - Use the overseas IP early warning mechanism to complete trademark searches and registrations before entering new markets, avoiding infringement risks. - Utilize AR digital product selection tools to showcase details to overseas clients, reducing sample shipping costs and improving remote communication efficiency. - Participate in overseas matchmaking events organized by the chamber, selecting target markets aligned with your production capacity to avoid overexpansion.
The true value of the Honghe model lies in answering a common industry question: when cost advantages fade, how can specialized markets retain buyers and sellers? Perhaps by transforming into intelligent nodes connecting production and consumption. This requires sustained investment and a willingness to change habits. At least, Honghe has taken the first step.